A FEW DAYS AS A MEDIA CIVILIAN, HULU.COM, TRACE ADKINS AND DURAN DURAN

A FEW DAYS AS A MEDIA CIVILIAN, HULU.COM, TRACE ADKINS & DURAN DURAN

We had an Artist Confidential Double header in New York. Used the Legacy Studios on 38th street instead of the typical Jazz at Lincoln Center which we are associated with. "JLC" was all booked up with Holiday activities, so off to West 38th street it was. Great facility over there. Extremely accommodating, comfortable, and the room is fantastic visually and sonically. First night was Trace Adkins. A nice guy...tall and Country. Kinda reminded me of a modern day John Wayne. He has great stories. Hell, he was once shot in the chest by an irate wife and survived. His POV is pretty right leaning. He's almost a Country Ted Nugent without the psycho thing. I think Trace is very much the voice of the Red State, and he presents his case with surprising clarity and logic. Would make a good commentator in some markets. I really liked him and his fans. His fans are unbelievable "nice". Like many Country artists, he was happy to stay an hour and meet and talk to EVERY fan. Unreal. Try that most genres--ain't gonna happen. I'm not a huge fan of his sort of music, but the show delighted the fans, and that's all that matters.

The next night was Duran Duran. I couldn't fly myself so had to take the Delta Shuttle which actually left on time. the weather was awful and the Duran show started at 9pm, that means I'd miss the last shuttle and have to spend the night which I couldn't do as it was my last day before a short trip to Naples Florida. The show actually started around 11 and ended at 1am! Feedback was that the guys were amazing, as reported by the tired throngs of mangers, label people and XMers in attendance. Not to mention some love letters from their fans in attendance. I've been working on Duran Duran for Artist Confidential since 2003...I guess it didn't hurt that Michelle over at 20 on 20 has been incredibly supportive of the band too. It's that "16-20" factor in action. The music that moves you during those formative years, sticks with you. The fans were the first generation and they don't grow out of artists that moved them. In the Rock n Roll stock market, hold onto Duran Duran stock for long term benefits.

Jayme Karp our Artist Confidential goto coordinator phoned her Mom when she found that we were taking Delta instead of my plane as her Mom suspects that I will fly and endanger her daughter in any weather conditions. I earned points from the Karp's for having the sense to go commercial on an icy night.

Lou Brutus hosted both of these shows as regular George Taylor Morris was out that week. Lou, our all star utility man, took a break from programming the Led Zeppelin Channel to take the reigns. He was great as he seamlessly maneuvered from a Deep South to a UK presentation.

So, it was then off to Naples Florida. First time in the area for while, at least since putting on the local AOR many years ago. The flight down was awesome as we had an approach over the beach and lined up for final approach about ten miles off the coast. Not every flight there are dolphins between you and the runway. Checked out the local stations. Really can’t handle FM. They all sound exactly alike with some minor exceptions on the play lists. The voices...the attitude...the...everything. So I ended up on AM. Could pick up WQAM the first station I worked for out of Miami. I got sentimental as that station, so many years ago, was SO in sync with what was happening. It manufactured excitement in every break. The sadness came in listening to the soul less FMs today. Utilities...nothing more. While it's a different era today, there is NO imagination left on those stations. Instead of dwelling in sadness, I’m just happy to contribute what I can to XM where we have the opportunity to make a difference. Plus I can listen to our highly successful 60s station to recapture that sprit that has vanished. Our 60s on Six IS SOOOOO much better than an oldies station today which is simply more crap 21st Century FM radio...that happens to be playing old songs. So--back to AM. It was at least "interesting". Musically I used my I-pod as I deliberately didn't bring XM...The goal was to spend a few days recharging and attempting to live as a normal non media civilian....and if I had XM, I'd be making notes. Didn't matter though...I was making notes anyways. Went out and bought 12 newspapers, watched every channel on the cable and tried to listen to local radio, and used the opportunity to try to come up with some thinking as I was this temporary civilian away from the office and on a very low email week. CNBC had an interesting show on the history of video games. Five year life cycles and a target that moves at light speed. Old media can learn a few tricks from these guys, though their demographic is so narrowly defined that they don't have to worry about mass appeal age wise. A nice luxury.

Print wise, other than visiting the local newsstand, the hotel delivered a USA Today, WSJ, New York Times and the local paper. Four examples of good definition. USA Today being Americas greatest hits...breezy, scannable and vibrant. WSJ was medium paced, dead on the money for their psychographic target and scannable "real news" without fear of being bogged down by this weeks' celebrity scandal. New York Times was "heavy" and intellectual. The local paper was lightweight, foreign (couldn’t relate to the local stories---there’s not that much going on in Naples in light of today’s Global community) and old. Most local newspapers seem to be locked into an old school format, and their format is a combination of ingredients as if grasping at straws, whereas USA, WSJ and the NY Times have a very clear mission and format. Newspapers remind me of AM radio in 1975. A handful will figure it out and remain giants--and even grow, others will fade away or simply become obsolete via the emerging technologies...and that's already happening. The ones that figure it out will be timeless. With all of the talk about Satellite, FM, Internet radio and MP3, there are a few AM stations...in 2007 that kick the hell out of all of those new media. Newspapers biggest obstacles are self inflicted: Denial, a dated culture, inflexibility, fear, holding old values sacred, a club where outsiders are unwelcome, cumbersome internal structure based on 1957, worshiping the journalism school (good grammar is good--but can you imagine if the pioneers of modern radio demanded a broadcast journalism degree? Top 40 would have never existed as the schools tend to preach history and correctness more than innovation and imagination), obstinate....Still--like an AM station that continues to dominate, there’s no reason a newspaper can't dominate. It just ain't going to be Ward and June sending rover out to fetch the Daily Bugle from the front porch, Dad reading the sports while Junior reads the funnies and Mom looks for recipes. Though I think some papers still view it that way.

Then there are the local TV stations...no comment, they all look exactly the same in EVERY market. I am now convinced that most local anchor people are manufactured at a plant somewhere in Pasadena....next to the facility that cranks out news intros and slogans...And that the look, feel and smell of local stations is mandated by some secret content law.

One thing that really impressed new was HULU.COM. It's the new site that's a joint venture between NBC Universal and News Corp Fox. It's kind of a "professional" You tube. I signed up as a beta tester. While You Tube is infinitely entertaining as I find everything from Radio Controlled 747's landing in parking lots to ...anything. There's a DIY quality about it, whereas Hulu is slick, easy to navigate, very high quality and clean. The content ranges from the Blues Brothers movie to old episodes of Jack Webb's Dragnet (classic...so bad they are genius) to the latest Simpson’s and Kitchen Nightmare episodes. While its ad supported, the ads are infrequent and VERY short--don’t really notice them. Unlike the grainy homemade You Tube video, you go to full screen on Hulu and its pretty crisp with good sound. The content isn't very deep yet, but I'm sure it will be as they add shows and open it up to the public. Early on though, the whole experience was a good one. It's run by a guy from Amazon. Kinda like the name too...

It's good to be a civilian for a few days...

ELECTION ADVICE FROM SOMEONE RELATIVELY NORMAL

ELECTION ADVICE FROM SOMEONE RELATIVELY NORMAL

Arlo Guthrie did Artist Confidential. What a storyteller! From a young Bob Dylan knocking on his door to meet his dad, to well…you gotta listen. Arlo is what Artist Confidential is all about. The stories! Then two days later we did Diamond Rio. Sweet harmonies and great guys. A joy. Did a Christmas Edition. Jon Anthony subbed for George Taylor Morris and pulled it off great. It’s interesting to see the traction the Artist Confidential series is getting lately, since the introduction of XMX—Channel 2. A day doesn’t go by when I Don’t get:

LISTENER: Say—that Artist Confidential thing is cool
ME: Yeah. How long have you been listening to XM?
LISTENER: 4 Years
ME: And you never heard of Artist Confidential?
LISTENER: Nope.

Sorta says it all about OTT (Over-the-top). Gotta be OTT or it doesn’t cut through. Not in the age of subtle in terms of these kinds of things.

Still a year away from the Presidential Elections and the circus is in full force. No wonder John Edwards got booed at a Mellencamp concert. It’s their way of commenting on the dumbing down/junk culture/idiot culture presentation of candidates. The dysfunctionality of the process that underscores today’s junk culture environment.

In a highly personal, extremely arguable, and admittedly naïve (but maybe not THAT naïve) evaluation of what would win…what would resonate—I think the following characteristics would be effective:

*A Zero Dirt approach. Make the other candidate look asinine by taking a “that’s your opinion, here’s mine” non combative approach. Refreshing. Praise the competition when worthy.

*Keep religion out of it. Spirituality and beliefs, great. Using them as a tactic sucks.

*Build the Military to its highest technological form. STRENGTH is a deterrent…and our strength is technology.

*Stop invading and meddling in Countries where the public hates us. It ALWAYS backfires.

*If someone does DIRECTLY & CLEARLY hassle us or our RELIABLE allies---kick the shit out of them…but selectively...and with an exit plan. War for oil ain’t working last time I checked oil prices.

*Talking to the enemy. At least give talk a shot. Get in the talk ring and spar there instead of in the media.

*Homeland Security is pretty dammed important. Always has been. Seems too radical now because it’s been so lax pre 9/11.

*Education rules! It’s one of the few things that can be a tool toward the masses rejecting empty consumerism and junk culture. Weaning people off electronic junk food. Rejecting idiocy and embracing personal growth.

*Better fix our cities. It’s a shame how, here in DC after a storm, the “nice streets” are cleaned up WAY before the ‘poor streets’.

*Stay out of religious wars. In fact, send all the fanatics (from all sides) to Greenland and let ‘em fight it out there.

*Facilitating a change in thinking. Not preaching it…facilitating it.

*Let Iran have nuclear power. It’s inevitable that every nation will. A pre-emptive strike will be very effective in creating a very bad situation…then again if they used those weapons, it would be VERY bad for them. Stop meddling...but if they DO create a problem, THEN bomb the hell out of them.

*AIR POWER. Stay off the ground.

*Aggressively export our art. Music, popular (non junk) culture, literature, etc…It’s our most endearing product.

*Get back in the technology game instead of living in the 1950’s when it was correctly assumed that ours is the best. Some of our once great products stink.

*Stay away from technological denial. We don’t “own” technical advances.

*A GREAT inspirational speaker is critical to the job’s success. PARTICULARLY in today's visual world. Too pretty hurts too. We want REAL not cute.

*Be wary of “Star Power”. It may sell perfume, but it doesn’t sell leaders. Most "stars" are SO far from mainstream thinking and the mainstream KNOWS that. They may create mainstream movies and songs, but they usually create more of an eye roll than traction.

*Listen to Old Time Radio shows. In those shows, foreigners are always portrayed as evil or dumb. And the USA is always tough and macho. Gotta lose that 1948 thinking.

*Gun Control. CONTROL is the key word. Guns ain’t going away…just make sure cops have bigger ones.

*Abortion. Let the Woman decide. If their religion prohibits it…fine. Keep religion out of things. Again, religion is fine…just keep it personal.

*Lose the America Love it or Leave It. Doesn’t resonate—sort of like “Home of the Best Rock”. Try America Fix it or Leave it. Recognition of problems instead of blind patriotism will actually increase the love instead of the denial that there are problems angle….

*If you don’t want to be here and contribute to our melting pot...don't come. Drives me nuts when Middle Easterners go to, say, The Netherlands, and "demand" that the Dutch conform to their wishes.

*Put bureaucracy buzzers in every Government office. I had to fill out some forms to fly into Canada. The US form required was completely unbelievable. Page after page of complexity. The Canadian form was one page…and they even said “Thank you” at the end of it. And that’s just a form---

*Place a high value on intellect. Potatoe was a dead giveaway

*Be very suspicious of old money rich guys running. A lot of baggage there. “Hey…I’m LOADED…I think I’ll run for President!” Same thing with the “cute” factor.

*The last thing we need is a “whiny” politician.

*Israel—Hey, they’re an staunch ally that lives a pretty similar lifestyle…

*The USA is a wonderful and crazy place…not shortage of problems, but still pretty cool. SELLING that ain’t gonna happen with parades and bumper stickers though…there’s new ways to sell this idea to the mainstream. Starts by admitting and addressing weaknesses.

*Bask in our freedom but don’t slam it down throats of Countries that don’t want it...or in no-win situations. We have enough problems HERE to focus on.

*Deport any candidate using “This message is approved by” slogan.

*Speak in plain talk. In the 70’s, every other word from politicians was “detente”. 90% had no idea what that meant. Ever listen to candidates talk economics? It’s ancient Greek to the average citizen.

*The Patriot Act and similar reasonable intelligence acts are GOOD. If you are a normal citizen, the last thing anyone will want to do is spy on YOU. It's a reality of the era that bad guys are infiltrating.

*Don’t use a goofy campaign song.

*Attack unpopular idiocy. Guy burns flag and city commends him for speaking his mind type stuff.

*People don’t like MEAN candidates. Pat Buchanan was MEAN. Somewhere between the ultra liberal paranoid liberate the spotted moose crowd and the ultra conservative Jesus will kill you if you are Gay crowd lives a very reasonable mainstream.

*Illegal aliens. That’s a tricky one.

...another tricky one is that many Middle Eastern countries are run by billionaires (Bin Laden's half brother just bought the first Business SST Jet). With that kind of oil wealth floating around--why are the people so repressed? I certainly don't have an answer.

*Be in sync with 2008--warts and all.

On to a few lighter thoughts---

Boy bands re forming. I guess they’re now “Man Bands”…and then there’s the Spice Girls. Should be sickly funny to watch all the drama that unfolds around those tours.
Should be pretty amusing.

Holiday Music channels are on XM. Sure seems early to me—but I’m the last person you want to ask about the Holidays. One channel that I can’t wait for is SPECIAL X-MAS. Completely whacked Christmas songs. Dan Turner has been hiding away for weeks plowing through the sickest Holiday songs ever recorded.

* HOLLY - XM 103 (Began 11/1)
Contemporary Holiday Hits mixed with selected traditional favorites. (Mannheim Steamroller, Bruce Springsteen, Amy Grant, Carpenters)

BEGIN Mon. (11/19):
* HOLIDAY TRADITIONS - XM 104
Traditional Holiday recordings from the 40s through the 60s. (Bing Crosby, Andy Williams, Ray Conniff, Nat “King” Cole)

* MUSIC CITY HOLIDAY - XM 105
Contemporary and traditional Holiday hits from Country's biggest superstars. (Faith Hill, Alabama, George Strait, Kenny Rogers)

* A CLASSICAL CHRISTMAS - XM 106
Carols you know sung by the greatest classical musicians of all-time. (Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Luciano Pavarotti, Boston Pops, Leontyne Price)

* SPECIAL X-MAS - XM 107
The soundtrack to your dysfunctional family holiday with comedy, parodies and seasonal insanity

*RADIO HANUKKAH - XM 108
Dec. 4th - 12th
An eight day channel focusing on Hanukkah music and Jewish culture

…and DEFINITELY check out “Baseball Confidential”---Amazing shows. Like Artist Confidential

LED ZEPPELIN, DESIGNING REVOLUTION, IDIOT CULTURE AND MERLE HAGGARD'S WISDOM

LED ZEPPELIN, DESIGNING REVOLUTION, IDIOT CULTURE AND MERLE HAGGARD’S WISDOM


LED ZEPPELIN: we have launched a dedicated Led Zeppelin Channel. Not easy to put that one together as there are 3 managers, 1 lawyer, and a record company. I had to work phones overtime to get this one closed…and lost sleep along the way.
Despite all that—It’s done and will be very cool. On channel 59. Our production SWAT team went over the top to make this in sync with Led Zeppelins vibe---Mystical, thunderous, magical and wide screen. We are also a major income source for anyone on E-bay and musicstack.com selling Zeppelin stuff that the band will approve us airing. Lou Brutus our resident creative go-to guy is the PD. It’s not easy doing these things…but rewarding for XM, me and most importantly the bands’ fans.

A 24/7 celebration of the music and magic of Led Zeppelin. A handcrafted channel dedicated to everything Led Zeppelin, including studio albums, rare and archival concerts, interviews, and listener interaction. A continuous and mystical radio voyage into the past, present, and future of the mighty Led Zeppelin.


A lot of new FM stations called "Fresh". More stations that sound like detergents. And of course there's NOTHING Fresh about these stations. In fact other than slogans they're pretty stale. More lies. And one wonders why FM's have declining credibility in today's environment. they should just call it Fabreze.

Revolutionizing media isn’t about dumbing it down…it’s about re-thinking it so more people will embrace it.

Integrity and Quality are timeless concepts---but the definition has changed since the days of Cronkite and Murrow. I see where some try to “bring back” quality and integrity, but fail to do it on 21st Century terms.

Every aspect of Radio, Local TV and Newspaper content has been dramatically improved and updated…except by the newspapers and TV stations themselves. Weather is BETTER on the Internet…Business News is BETTER on Bloomberg…etc… Time to get in the “better” game.

Cell phones re-invent themselves every six months. While that re-invention is often technology driven, Joe Citizen doesn’t care. All he knows is that these things in their lives keep improving. Local TV and Newspapers haven’t noticeably improved in decades. Time to get in the “ongoing improvement” game. Compared to the glory days of newspapers when things changed on a slow basis…things today change practically daily. To stay in sync, the SWAT mentality needs to be engrained.

Revolutions are about “we”. The leaders need to engage EVERYone. And EVERYone needs to engage the cause. You are either WITH the revolution or AGAINST it. You will either be embraced by the company and win or the company will beat you. No middle ground. If you are IN—cool—Bear down for battle. If you are OUT---Cool—Good luck with your future. Just figure out where you want to be… Middle ground wastes EVERONES time.

Need to create FANS not just users. Fandom isn’t necessarily a sports or music thing. Fox News has FANS.

It would be revolutionary in itself if management talked to the general staff in real talk not business speak. In fact, I think most business speak creates an eye roll effect upon the rank and file. Verbal empathy instead of “the voice from the top floor that doesn’t understand me”


I like slogans to help flight this kind of thing—or HOPEFULLY inspire thinking that’ll help move things forward:


AFDI” Actually F-cking Doing it. (Executing on ideas and big plans rather than having the big off-site, developing exciting plans…then absolutely nothing happens)

“PASSION CHARACTER & MUSCLE” The Big Three (Executing with passion…Character – where it’s done with style…and Muscle. Today’s media not a place for the timid)

“THE MTV INTERIORITY COMPLEX”. (Radio suffered from this. I imagine in other media there’s an Internet Inferiority complex---a thing where the idea that you are old and tired permeates the building and that the OTHER guys are where the excitement is)

“CLICHÉ BUZZER” (installed. Three buzzes and you’re fired…to de-condition and liberate people from tired clichés)

“MEETING TIMER” (installed in conference rooms so meetings don’t go on and on –to the point of painfully unproductive). Long meetings are OK---as long as they aren’t long for long sake.

“AVERAGE SUCKS” (Yet, it seems to be acceptable and even encouraged...)

“THE REVOLUTION WILL BE TELEVISED” (Never used this, but it might be good around TV stations)!

“DEXTER MUST DIE” (Dexter was a morning show tape we got “Dexter in the Morning”—It was SO incredibly lame that Dexter became a poster boy for everything wrong with radio…I imagine there are Dexter examples in Print & TV)

“UNDERSTAND THE PAST TO DESIGN THE FUTURE” (nod to the importance of understanding and respecting the past…but using the past to DESIGN the future rater than dwelling on the glory of the old days or the problems of the present).

“MISSIONS NOT JOBS” (Want a “job”? Fine…not here)

“SHOWS NOT SHIFTS” (pet peeve---DJ says “Got to do my shift”. Factory workers do shifts, DJ’s do shows. Even if they only read a liner card an hour—it’s STILL a show…Even if he’s only playing songs…it’s still a show. “Shift” strikes me as disrespectful to the idea of entertaining and/or informing people).

“BANNED WORDS” (‘Out of the Box” is a good example. It is SO overused, it doesn’t mean anything)

“CREATIVE BATTING AVERAGE” (Come up with 100 ideas on how to make something better…if only 30 are good—you are an all star---.300 Hitter. Most people are batting .000---content with sitting on the bench and not swinging for the fences with new and better ways to do things)

“WORLD WAR 2” (It took the American GI’s to battle the forces of evil in WW2. Nowadays, there are a different kind of evil out there---BAD MEDIA. Gotta be the GI’s of the Media War. With an attitude that “if we don’t do it” America will fall into evil hands of junk culture.


The last trip to New York included spending an hour on air with Opie and Anthony. Earlier that morning they said I was interesting in print but boring on the air. Oddly enough I was there an hour later so they let me try to redeem myself. I probably AM boring on the air…maybe not. That evening, I flew Eric Logan and former RIAA chief Hilary Rosen back to DC in my plane. First time for Hilary and of course it was another miserable flying night—bumpy and in the clouds and rain the whole time. Eric and I kept peeking back to see if she was OK. She was sleeping. Good. Back in DC, we landed at about 1am. Eric had his car there and left and Hilary had a car service scheduled to pick her up. NO car service in sight. Drover her around the airport for 45 minutes while she was talking to the driver who had a limited command of English….trying to figure out where he was. Turned out he was INSIDE the airport security ring. He buzzed a buzzer at a private gate with a thick Middle Eastern accent and they buzzed him in! Now this is a high security area you need a special ID to get into. He buzzed…they let him in. Huh!!?? Well…he wasn’t a terrorist, but that is not good.

IDIOT CULTURE. Interesting comments from Carl Bernstein:

GREENWICH, Conn. (AP) - A culture coarsened by celebrity news is to blame for inadequate public affairs journalism, Watergate reporter Carl Bernstein told a group of college preparatory students.
Newspapers are devoting fewer resources to issues of importance such as the Iraq war and potential abuses of the U.S. Constitution, the former Washington Post reporter told students at the Brunswick School on Thursday.
He said more resources are being devoted to the lifestyles of celebrities such as Donald Trump and Paris Hilton.
"The problems we have in news and journalism are about us not doing our job well enough," Bernstein said. "The ideal of providing the best available version of the truth is being affected by the dominance of a journalistic culture that has less and less to do with reality and context."
Bernstein, 63, said he believes an "idiot culture" is partly to blame for the dysfunction of political life in the United States.
"You can't separate the appetites and demands of the people themselves and what they are given," he said. "The blame simply can't all be put at the feet of those who present news."
Bernstein and Bob Woodward are known for their work at the Washington Post in the 1970s when they broke numerous stories reporting on the Watergate scandal that eventually drove President Richard Nixon from office.
Bernstein is promoting his recent biography of presidential candidate Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., the Democrats' leading candidate.

…then there’s these words of wisdom from Merle Haggard about…..life.
What I've Learned: Merle HaggardSinger, 70, Redding, California8/23/2007, 11:11 AMI've lived at the very end of what must have been a wonderful country.They've left the redwoods up alongside the highway so we'll think they're all there. But go up in an airplane and you'll see that they've clear-cut everything behind.The kids just don't know how big the tear on the rip-off was. If they had any idea, I believe they could do something about it. But it may be too late. We'll see. They're smarter. They can talk to one another. I don't look for a politician to bullshit his way in this time.When I was nine years old, right after my dad died, my mother got me some violin lessons with this big heavyset lady. It took nine lessons before this lady said to my mother, "You're wasting your money. He's got too good an ear. He's not going to fool with learning to read when he can play something that he hears on the radio." When I heard her say that, I knew I had something.We weren't thieves by nature. Pranksters. Practical jokers. We were without a car one time, Dean Holloway and I. We just went out and started borrowing cars. Sometimes we'd bring 'em back. Put gas in 'em. Clean 'em up. Leave a little note: THANKS FOR THE CAR. Like the Phantom.I'm in a very small percentage of people ever in the joint who beat it. It's like 2 percent of 2 percent. If you've ever been to the joint, you're going back.I'll tell you why it's different when somebody else is singing "Mama Tried": They're reading the words. I'm telling the story.I got out something like nine that morning. February 3, 1960. There's a big metal security device at the main door coming out of San Quentin. When they open that door, it comes up and you have to step over it. Just as I was stepping over that device, a Hank Snow record came on. "The Last Ride." My foot just stopped in midair. The song was coming from a radio near this guard who was standing there with his gun. He said, "What, did you change your mind?" I said, "No, that's a really great song." I stayed there and listened to the rest of the song.Couldn't have done the music without it. Wouldn't have thought of it. Wouldn't have been part of me.Willie Nelson is an idol for me. The music is sort of immaterial. Willie is seventy-four. A lot of people don't realize how healthy he is. He doesn't eat any strict diet. But he doesn't eat very much of anything. He understands the value of water.Seventy is a big mark. I'm feeling good. But Bing Crosby felt good, too, and he came off the eighteenth hole, just kind of laid down in the grass, and that was that.Freedom is what prohibition ain't.I probably had as bad a sex urge as anybody when I was younger. I remember an old guitar player, Eldon Shamblin, told me, "When you get pussy off your mind, you can go ahead and learn something." Isn't that great?Willie Nelson's the one who told me the reason it costs so much to get divorced is because it's worth it.I remember going to a dance when I was a kid - my older brother took me in. Roy Nichols was playing. My brother said, "Hey, there's a little guy in there playing guitar. He don't have to pick cotton or go to school." Roy Nichols became my idol on the guitar. Many years later, he went on to play for me for half price. But he and I could never look directly at each other. I never knew why. At first, I thought it was because I admired him too much. But it was Roy, too. Anyway, late in his life, Roy had a stroke. Paralyzed him on one side. Right down the middle. Half of his nose he could blow, the other half was dead. After his stroke, I went over to Roy's house. He looked me right in the eye and said, "Look here: I love you." I got chills. He said, "That old shit went down the hole with this stroke."They got laws for the white man and laws for the black man - we all know that.Lefty Frizzell said you don't have to experience everything to sing about it. But you've got to believe it.I think what we're lacking in music today is it seems like all the good stories have been already taken. "Stardust" has already been written. "Your Cheatin' Heart." "Imagine." God almighty, lightning may never strike again like that.If only somebody could come up with something different - start a new trend. Real music. If only somebody could sing a song, had something to say, had a good melody, and could do it in person, without help from any electronics. I think the people would go nuts. It's bound to happen. There's got to be a guy out there somewhere. A natural.

…Thanks Merle.

SCRAPBOOK: NOVEMBER 2001

SCRAPBOOK: NOVEMBER 2001

My computer is running at a snails pace. I’m about to go back to ink. Then our I.T. Department tells me that the fact I have over 200,000 emails on my laptop may have something to do with it. SO---I went back…and started clearing out…and found a whole bunch of oddball emails from the month we launched XM. A simpler time. Below are a few of these---kind of “scrapbook” sorta stuff: All about passion, excellence, promise…and the kind of fun that happens when things are so young…XM has grown into a “real” company, but it’s fun to look back to the early days (the first month) when we didn’t have much to worry about in programming other than getting the sound right…Read on….some nostalgic fun:

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“They don't make records like "Pinball Wizard" anymore. Literally. There was this acoustic guitar in one ear. And then, all of a sudden, twenty five seconds into it, an electric BLARED into the other. Today they mix for the center. No special effects. Nothing new. But in the sixties, we were all on this ADVENTURE! And our stereos were part of it. Artists took chances and were proud to be progressive”.
“Listen to the radio stations today. Listen to the hit records on these stations. If artists would take a 60’s pill and begin to experiment again, maybe it would affect radio, and radio would once again invent sounds instead of trying to always be funny or angry within the vanilla and jokingly clichéd formats. But imagine: Great music on great stations? Good luck”.

I didn’t write this but it’s true….the 60’s pill is in your head.

And remember:
Verbally, we gotta get be coherent
Sonically, we gotta be incoherent
-------------------------------------------

XM BAND REHEARSAL/JAM!!!!

Rehearsal and Jamming for upcoming appearances of the XM Band are happening.

You need to be available two nights a week.

If you are interested, contact Bandleader Junior Marvin by email ASAP (please cc me).

Thanks
Lee


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Attached is the first PROGRAMMING HIGHLIGHTS which will be posted on the Website and distributed to our Press people. (file below)

As far as the XM “push” goes---First it was “The Concept”…then it was “The Rockets”…then it was “The Radios”….Now>>>>>IT’S US!

It is absolutely critical that you contribute each week so your format is represented.

Bootcamp Reminder---Be there by 8am or suffer horrible consequences.

Thank you.
Lee


WEEKLY HIGHLIGHTS


NOVEMBER 5TH 2001
Channel Name
CH #
Time (EST)
Description
MONDAY 5



90s ON 9:


NICK CARTER- BACKSTREET BOYS W/KANE 5PM EST
AMERICA:


BILL ANDERSON VISITS W/BOOTS RANDOLPH AND VINCE GILL. 7PM EST
DEEP TRACKS:


LITTLE FEAT ACOUSTIC PERFORMANCE AT XM 10A EST (45 MIN)
DEEP TRACKS:


BBC CONCERT QUEEN- NIGHT AT THE OPERA 6AM EST
THE JOINT


DAMIAN MARLEY NEW ALBUM - HALF AY TREE




TUESDAY 6



XM CAFÉ:


3PM XM CAFÉ LIVE (60 MIN) JONI MITCHELL AND JAMES TAYLOR IN CONCERT
AMERICA:


JOE DIFFIE WILL DELIVER AND DEBUT HIS NEW ALBUM
AMERICA:


IMPORTANT NEW RELEASES- MERLE HAGGARD, ROOTS VOL. ONE
DEEP TRACKS:


BBC CONCERT KINKS 10AM EST
THE JOINT:


NEW NO DOUBT REGGAE SINGLE FEATURING BONTI KILLA - HEY BABY
NASCAR:


"DAYTONA TIME" NASCAR LIVE 7PM EST (1 HR)




WEDNESDAY 7



XM CLASSICS:


BBC CONCERT SERIES- 9PM EST (2 HR) SYMPHONY/MAREK, JANOWSKI, PGM INCL. FRANCK, SCHUMANN & BRUCKNER 4TH SYMPHONY
BPM:


LONDON EXPERIMENT /DJ JAMIE J MIX 10PM - 12AM EST
FINE TUNING:


THRESHOLD W/MONA GOLABEK 1PM (2 HR)
THE JOINT:


SHAGGY INTERVIEW 5PM EST
XMLM:


JUGGALO SHOW (INSANE CLOWN POSSE) 3PM EST (2 HR)




THURSDAY 8



DEEP TRACKS:


BBC CONCERT THE POLICE-1976 10PM EST
FINE TUNING:


EAR COLLEGE W/MARTIN GOLDSMITH (VARIOUS TIMES)
ON THE ROCKS:


COCKTAIL HOUR W/STEVE GAVENAS 7PM EST (1 HR)




FRIDAY 9



WATERCOLORS:


BONEY JAMES DAY NEW AND CATALOG BONEY MUSIC ALL DAY
XMU:


THE STROKES STROKE A WHOLE DAY DEDICATED TO THE 1 MONTH ANNIVERSARY OF THE RELEASE OF THE NEW STROKES CD, WITH NEW CUTS EVERY HOUR FROM "IS THIS IT" INCLUDING THE TRACK THAT GOT PULLED FROM THE CD
70s ON 7:


INTERVIEW WITH AMERICA DURING SARI'S SEVENTEEN
BPM:


SLAM FRANCISCO/DJ DAVID HARNESS MIX 3PM EST
DEEP TRACKS:


BBC CONCERT THE PRETENDERS 1PM EST
DEEP TRACKS:


JON ANDERSON ON ART OF ROCK - MAGNIFICATION ALBUM COVER 9A EST
FINE TUNING:


THRESHOLD W/ MONA GOLABECK 2AM (2 HR)
NASCAR:


"DAYTONA TIME" QUALIFYING FOR PENNZOIL 400 (HOMESTEAD MIAMI SPEEDWAY) 3PM EST (2 HR)




SATURDAY 10



XMU:


SPACE STATION FOUR THREE 3 HOURS OF THE XMU'S FACULTY FAVS. PLAYED BACK FROM THE HUBBLE BY COMPUTER AND MONKEE. PREMIERES AT 1XMZ (8P EST)
BONEYARD:


ED ZACHARY PRANK SHOW 6PM - 9PM
BEYOND JAZZ:


BEN SMITH'S INTERVIEW W/ JEAN LUC PONTY RE: HIS NEW RELEASE "LIFE ENIGMA" WILL AIR ONCE PER HOUR BETWEEN NOON AND 5PM EST
DEEP TRACKS:


BBC CONCERT LED ZEPPELIN 9PM EST
NASCAR:


"DAYTONA TIME" POPEYE'S 300 (BUSCH RACE) HOMESTEAD MIAMI SPEEDWAY 1PM EST (3 HR)




SUNDAY 11



X COUNTRY:


X CHECKING THE 3 HR WEEKLY COUNTDOWN SHOW AT 1PM
BLUESVILLE:


BLUES ACCORDING TO THE GOSPEL 8AM - NOON, EVERY SUNDAY
BONEYARD:


ZEPLIFY ZEP MUSIC AND READINGS FROM THE BOOK OF ZOSO. 2 SERVICES AT 7AM AND 11AM
DEEPTRACKS:


BBC CONCERT ARGENT 11AM EST and FACES 6PM EST
NASCAR:


"DAYTONA TIME" PENNZOIL 400 (WINSTON CUP RACE) HOMESTEAD MIAMI SPEEDWAY 12PM EST (4 HR)
FINE TUNING:


EAR COLLEGE W/ WAYNE JOBSON (VARIOUS TIMES)












In the XM Studios



Who
Where
When
XM Liaison
Maxi Priest, Reggae Star
Joint Studio, Sm performance
11/6/2001 from Noon to 2PM
Wayne Jobson




-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Below is a pretty typical e-mail from a listener. What I want to point out is something we’ve discussed going back to our first meeting:

Marketing gets us “customers”…it’s up to us to convert them to “Fans”....

More and more e-mails are signed as the one below is-
“From your #1 FAN”

FAN is a way of thinking. Sure, they’re “customers” or as in terrestrial, they’re “numbers”…but for us, we need to strive for FANS. FANS are loyal. FANS don’t just happen. We need to RELATE TO OUR AUDIENCE AS FANS…TREAT THEM LIKE FANS…It’ll come right back at ya!

The Old Way: “Our 25-44 Females are enjoying the 3p-7p day parts

The XM Way: “Our Fans are diggin’ our Afternoon stuff”

FANS! Bring ‘em on! (See below)




First Name: Gary
Last Name: Watters
Email Address: onxm@my.st

Comment:
I thoroughly enjoy my XM Radio. Fine Tuning is the most intelligent station ever. The Deep Tracks are truly Deep. The Jazz Channel are all great. I don’t like Country but I
am liking Hank. My Wife can’t get enough of Heart. Your program creators should be complimented for making the song lists and radio in general fun again. You have a very unique and original sound.

If possible, I would like to see national broadcast television audio added to the stations. This way I can catch the begining of a primtime show I am late getting home for, or listen to Oprah while I'm running errands.

I understand the difficulty in purchasing this content, I do believe it would tie broadcast television media to satellite media which could definitely use a diplomatic boost.

Just a suggestion. I'll keep my XM anyway!!!

Your biggest fan,
Gary


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A few things:

AFDI TEST
In Boot camp 1,3 and 7 and included in the XM Playbook is:

"..Whenever you get artist ID's, make certain you get them to cut ID's for Christmas, Labor Day and other Holidays. Come Christmas, you will have dozens of custom ID's, and other stations will freak wondering "Where did they get those"!...it's the XM way of going the extra mile".

I'll bet we didn't AFDI this one too well. These are the "little details" that separate radio from AMAZING RADIO. So---It's your choice:

a) Show me I'm totally wrong and pull them out

b) Suffer through endless pounding of this at future meetings

c) Start plugging in the hundreds we DO have (special thanks to Mike) and remember to AFDI this at all future ID sessions.

.....The right answers are A or C.

Again, it's those little details. The bottom line: Let's flood the appropriate formats with Artist XMas ID's that we have in house...we have a ton in Dalet.


AWARDS
One of the benefits of our focus on Quality, Intensity and Originality is AWARDS! Realistically, the Mercury and Billboard awards are going to be tough because of politics. The people who vote on those, like GM's and Group heads would probably get fired for voting for us! BUT--There are countless other possibilities. I fully expect Maxx's Wynton Marsalis shows to be award winning. This is just a heads up, as we'll be talking about this extensively in 2002. Please be thinking about opportunities as we move this forward. If we do Award Quality radio...let's win 'em.


CHANNEL OF THE WEEK
I will of course post this on XM PLACE Monday, but a little extra bow to DEEP TRACKS. The reasons they get COTW include:
*George Harrison coverage. It wasn't the playing of George....it was the thoughtful dialogue...the interviews..the cool "other versions" of GH songs...the tasteful nature of handling this. Compared to (I kid you not) the big Philly AOR's salute "20 song George Harrison Beatle Break marathon" Deep Tracks honored George in an artful and hype-free way

*Deep Tracks has been extremely responsive to updating and improving the music mix

*Deep Tracks Production is great...always fresh....and truly celebratory of the era they serve.

*Deep Tracks "Interview Format" is revolutionary.

*Few cross promote and "sell" music better than GTM and Beard

*Cool features and nice to hear Alternate song versions!

...now if I can only get GTM to do the "On-A-Satta-Day-Nighta" salute to Iron Butterfly!

...nice job Deep Tracks. Great to have you on the lineup!

New York City launch coming this Thursday! Sting LIVE from NYC on Wednesday! All Holiday Music on Special X. Lots of action on XM!
The Fans are out there! Thanks.
AFDI
Lee


-------------------------------------------------------------

NEW YORK REPORT

Very successful NYC launch!

Thursday, picked up Wynton in an XM Saab. Kid in a candy store! Had the presets locked on Real Jazz, Raw, Classics within 7 seconds.

Press Conference was a smash. TV crews, Rlling Stone, NY Times, they were all there. Jonathan Schwartz was live on air from BB Kings Club.

Investor dinner was a boozy, Blues filled classic.

A wonderful time for XM!


---------------------------------------------------------------------------



Satellite radio has arrived

by Fred Shuster, staff writer, The Daily News, December 2001

Remember the first stirrings of cable? The general feeling was nobody would pay for television.
Or consider the compact disc, before those costly little silver Frisbees dumped your vinyl dreams in La Brea Tar Pits? Oh, how we laughed in the days before the revolution.
That's how satellite radio might appear today. The fledgling digital service, which delivers vast numbers of channels of often commercial-free music and talk to subscribers throughout the country, offers programming with far more imagination than usual.
Anyone up for a channel devoted solely to NASCAR? Reggae? The Firesign Theatre? Phish? .
Paying your dues
"TV was free for decades and now some of us willingly pay $90 a month for it," says Richard Neer, author of the just-published "FM: The Rise and Fall of Rock Radio" (Villard, $24.95), a history of the format. "And like cable TV, satellite gives you choices you didn't have before. If it supersedes FM the way FM superseded AM, then it will be very important."
For long-distance motorists and committed music fans, extra-terrestrial radio is sent from the heavens. For instance, among XM Satellite Radio's 71 music channels are adventurous alt-country, bluegrass, Christian, classic soul, blues and jazz stations.
"I'm a real radio fanatic," said TV assignment editor and XM subscriber Hans Laetz, 44, who drives two hours a day to and from work. "And the ability to have all these music channels plus 30 news stations including the BBC World Service is overwhelming. For radio and music fans, this is the equivalent of going from 12 channels on over-the-air TV to 400 channels on cable."
Laetz said he particularly enjoys XM's '60s station, which he likens to a genuine full-service Los Angeles Top 40 station of the era, "complete with obnoxious disc jockeys, jingles and a terrific playlist. (Oldies) KRTH-FM plays 400 songs, the '60s station plays something like 2,000 songs -- and that's just one XM station."
Something for everyone
Among XM's unusual offerings is the excellently named "Fred," a classic-alternative outlet that airs U2 and R.E.M. alongside obscure cuts from the likes of the Smiths, Echo & the Bunnymen, and Elvis Costello.
Nearby on the XM dial, fans of '70s troubadours get their own channel. "The Loft" goes in for the Van Morrison, James Taylor and Jackson Browne singer-songwriter axis, but veers towards lesser-known material and even one-hit wonders.
There are two satellite radio companies. XM, with its flashy, surreal TV commercials ("Radio to the power of X") launched in November, charging $9.99 a month. Its lone competitor, Sirius, rolls out Feb. 14 and costs $12.95 per month.
"Satellite is not going to be hugely popular everywhere immediately," says Lee Abrams, XM's chief programmer. "It would be foolish to think it'll happen in a year. But our reach is incredible and what we have to offer is just fantastic. Look, we'll never put FM out of business. But I think we have a very formidable alternative that a lot of people will want."
Both XM and Sirius -- which won't divulge how many subscribers they've got although analysts say the combined tally is under 100,000 -- have worked hard to fast-forward their profile, lining up partners in the auto and electronics industries and utilizing extensive advertising budgets.
For example, the latest Cadillac Seville and DeVille models offer factory-installed XM receivers, expanding to more than 20 GM models in 2002. Sirius, meanwhile, has snagged Mercedes, BMW, Ford, Volvo, Jeep and Jaguar.
But you don't have to buy a car to get a satellite receiver. All the major radio manufacturers offer self-installed units for around $450 to replace current dashboard radios. XM and Sirius, incidentally, are not compatible.
"The technology is worth waiting for," said Joe Capobianco, senior vice president of programming for Sirius. "It's radio with the subscriber in mind. You'll hear things you don't expect and you'll be able to scratch whatever listening itch you may have at any point in time."
Money for nothing
The potential for profit is great. After all, nearly 219 million Americans -- or 96 percent of those 12 and over -- tune into 13,000 stations for news, sports, weather, traffic and music, averaging 20 hours of radio listening a week, according to Arbitron, the marketing research company.
But while radio is big business, it's never been less independent, the result of deregulation which allowed a handful of broadcasting companies to own the majority of stations. Consequently, programming decisions for huge national chains are often made by one office.
"We can go deeper in an artist's catalog than anyone would ever even dream on terrestrial radio," Abrams said. "And we can offer formats that would never sell on regular radio. The only people that would buy ads on a heavy metal-only channel on commercial radio would be tattoo parlors."
Despite satellite's clear potential and commercial radio's dire state, it may be a battle to get us to pay for something we already get free. But the general feeling is your car radio is so dull and predictable that XM and Sirius may just catch on in the same way many viewers now gladly shell out for HBO.
XM, which is based in Washington, D.C., and Sirius, which has its studios in New York, both target Los Angeles as their biggest potential market, saying the sprawling city boasts the most striking need for dramatic dial choice.
"Unlike a lot of other places, L.A. is a car town where people spend multiple hours a week commuting," says Doug Wilsterman, senior vice president of marketing and distribution at Sirius. "And our focus groups tell us people are sick and tired of all the commercials, which can amount to 16 to 22 minutes an hour. That's the biggest complaint."
As with cable TV, which eventually developed its own award-winning programming, satellite has the potential to create its own stars.
"Oh, definitely," Capobianco said. "There will be a day when a satellite Howard Stern or Don Imus emerges. And that will be another reason for people to subscribe to the service. There will be a 'Sopranos' of satellite radio. And when that happens, people will really see what this is all about."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

(and if anyone has time to read this—here’s a nostalgic pre launch note…)

Swagger, Creative Freedom and Radio Nirvana are what we aim to enjoy. But it must be earned.....right now we are not totally earning it.
Bootcamp is a learning and sharing experience, but it can also be tough and grueling
Well....we have a situation...and it must be corrected NOW:


We understand that the production assignments over the past few weeks have been a first pass "test". Unfortunately, as a group we have failed the test.
The results of the work we heard so far:

OUTSTANDING/DEAD ON IT: 20% 60's, Watercolors,

CLOSE, BUT NEED WORK: 20% Close wont cut it

OFF TARGET. WRONG 60%

What we heard may be OK at terrestrial, but for XM it is totally unacceptable. We have to be at 100% perfect.

I'm not going to whine, but I must demand that we fix this asap, as time is an enemy, Granted, this was a "test"...but we flunked and need to get back in there and re-work it. I am totally confident of our ability to fix this.

The reason for this "test" was to uncover these things I'm about to mention. They have been uncovered, so now we must fix them.

Fortunately, the reason 80% was sub-standard for XM is pretty clear. PROGRAM DIRECTORS ARE NOT EFFECTIVELY DIRECTING THE PRODUCERS. Sonically, things were usually awesome, but if a production piece isn't perfectly targeted to the format, it's all noise....all clutter.

And again, there WAS some perfect work. But it ALL has to be perfect.


Here's what we must do...NOW:
THE SOLUTION

PROGRAM DIRECTORS: It is absolutely imperative that you sit with your production person and anyone associated with your channel and teach them your format...feed them sound clips....take them out to places your audience hangs...do everything possible to teach them the mission of your format..... DIRECT THEM. Frankly, while a lot of the production we heard was expertly assembled and sonically strong, much of it was WAY OFF BASE in terms of who the pieces targeted. Great sound…but wrong channel. This is unacceptable.

There was a tendency for:

*Too much stuff sounding like XMU....dense...fast...young. Little intensity diversity. Too foreground. Too in your face.

*Oldies station production that sounded 2001, not the era...lack of bites from the era...lack of authenticity...lack of era candy

*Lack of sound bites and sound diversity (little ear candy...few movie drops...lots of sped up voices and god forbid—goofy filtered voices)

*LONG promos. Who cares if were commercial free if we have two minute sweepers.

*Not enough slogans or statements

*Clogged and cluttered so you couldn't understand the verbal message

* Direction & Vibe Out of sync with the target audience.

*No closing statements.....sonics left hanging

*Weak "impersonations" and specialty voice work.

*Some of it sounding, frankly, dumb. Very Beavis & Butthead. OK in spots...but too much Beavis on formats that should be "smart radio"

*Not using All of the tools available. Over-reliance on certain protools that create a sameness

*Weak..or nonexistant WRITING/SCRIPTING. Even a 5 second bit needs to be written. Soundtrack & Script = Amazing

*Not THINKING deep enough. Details often missing.

Every piece didn't suffer from the above of course...often, the above were perfectly executed. BUT-there was enough occurrence of the above to raise a flag.

This is NOT the fault of the producers. In fact, part of "the plan" is to hire a mix of producers who have great minds and digital chops...THEN the PDs translate the format mission to them, feed them sound bites, live with them with the result being fresh, but perfectly focused and targeted production. We can't expect a 22 year old whiz to "feel" the 50's, or 30+ Fred, etc....Ya gotta give them the mental tools!

Not every format suffers this...but EVERYONE can improve on this first pass of production.

PD'S: You need to be IN THE STUDIO WORKING WITH YOUR PRODUCERS...NOW. If you're at your desk over the next few days, there needs to be a good reason. If YOU have a question about the direction...ask. You gotta get in there and teach the Producers every nuance about the format..the target..etc...I am at your disposal 24/7 if YOU have questions.

PICTURE A RECORDING BEING MADE: YOU (PDs) ARE THE ARTISTS...THE PRODUCTION PEOPLE ARE THE ENGINEERS BEHIND THE DESK.
YOU MUST TEACH THEM THE SOUND. THE BEATLES SPENT HOURS AND NIGHTS WITH GEORGE MARTIN THEIR PRODUCER EXPLAINING THE "CONCEPT" BEHIND THE SONGS...THEN GEORGE DID HIS MAGIC. WITH EVERY ARTIST & ENGINEER (PRODUCER) THERE IS A DIALOGUE..A BOND....WE NEED MORE OF IT HERE! NOW!

PICTURE TELLING A CAST OF A MOVIE YOU'RE DIRECTING..."GO FOR IT". NO!!!!! A GREAT DIRECTOR IS DIRECTING EVERY NUANCE OF THE SCRIPT (FORMAT). Every background noise...every line...every color...

Again, the stuff we heard was generally well done sonically, but NOT UP TO THE "REVOLUTIONARY" STANDARDS OF XM. Great for a typical station somewhere...but we must take it beyond!

Bottom line: OUT OF SYNC WITH THE TARGET!!!! PDS--GET ON THE PRODUCERS. TEACH THEM. INSTRUCT THEM. FEED THEM INFORMATION..FEED THEM SOUND BITES...TEACH THEM ABOUT THE PEOPLE THEY'RE PRODUCING FOR. DIRECT THEM!!!! YOU MUST SPEND TIME WITH THEM...A LOT OF TIME.

The producer/PD assignments may change...this is Dan's call. If you have a problem with your producer...see Dan ASAP!

We must get back to the style we had during CES where the PDs lived with the producers. Listen to the CES CD of America, 60s on 6, Fine Tuning, Fred, etc...good stuff...XM standards...AND IN SYNC WITH THE TARGET

THE BLUEPRINT:
Here are the basics of the XM Sound...you all know them...now APPLY IT!

AD'S FOR STATIONS or SOUND MOVIES?
You are in a theater......it's dark.....your eyes are closed....your senses are nailed with this stunning, chilling sound. You can "feel" the sound...you can "see" the sound. That is "Cinematic Sound"......That is the kind of sound that we should be producing. Sound Movies not Ads for Stations. It's a way of thinking...a way of producing.

PICTORIAL:
Another word for it is "pictorial"..creating mind pictures. Anyone can create sound.....the genius is in sound that people can see. The best was Carl Stalling (The Looney Tunes guy). He would create the sound for a cartoon before it's drawn, from story boards. In many ways, that's what YOU are doing. The story board is the format outline. You are literally creating the soundtrack for the channel. That's why this stuff is so damn important. Go beyond titillating the ears...go for the (closed) eyes

THE TARGET:
Do you know who you're producing for? Your PD should give you a crystal clear vision of who the listener is...or I can. At the last Bootcamp I showed photographs of the ideal target listener. You absolutely must target the production for who's going to hear it. For example:

XM Cafe: Earthy , 30 something.....global tastes (everything from Folk to Jazz).....Internet saavy Starbucks drinking...likes "smart" radio....dislikes gimmicks...wouldn't get caught dead at a meet market club... Production sound----Earthy...rich & clear

Boneyard: 27 year old, beer powered male clock puncher.....forced his way to row two at Milwaukee Summerfest '89....still raises fist and screams "wooooooh" at Concerts.....Crazy Train is his anthem... Production Sound----Fist raising...Out there...riot inciting...Wayne’s World dude.

Fred: A Cocky, "heard it all" 35 guy....insulted by goofy young end production....smarter. Loves SNL...Pulp Fiction was a cultural statement. This guy needs "Smart Radio"

Most radio stations' production is extremely similar. But you can see how while the age targets of the above two formats are similar, they are two completely different types. Therefore, to be authentic, we must tailor production to the exact target. Sounds obvious, but rarely does a station truly do this.
XM Formats all have a Point-of-View..."attitude" is kind of dated. Attitude usually means nastiness. We're beyond that. We need to think Point of View.
Production is a way to define the POV. POV creates fans. POV appalls non-target listeners....is joyous to target listeners.

Remember the quadrants. Is your sound Sick, Smart, Trailer Park or Teen (ask me if you weren't at Bootcamp or don't recall this)

INTELLIGENCE: We must deliver "Smart Radio"...it's all relative. Smart to a partyin' Boner is , well.....you know.
Smart to a Fred-ite is indeed smart.


TAKE PEOPLE PLACES:
Sound can do that. Where does that piece you created take you? The destinations are once again format oriented:

Oldies Type Stations: Take listeners to a place in time. Our 60's CES demo does an exceptional job of taking you back in time to the 60s.
XM Oldies stations are time trips and it's the production that carries a lot of the weight. Newsreels, drops, old commercials (cleared stuff of course…and we have plenty)

Streets & Towns (Soul Street & Bluesville): Take people there. I can hear a "tour of Bluesville" piece where the narrator says "Here's Bluesville Jetport (crickets)...wait a minute, we ain't got no Airport in Bluesville...here's Bluesville Station (sound of roaring locomotives).....you get the idea.
Soul Street takes you to Soul Street....maybe a funkier 60's version of "Do the Right Thing" sound.

Audio Disneyland: That secret place in the mind that turns sound into chills...you've all been there. Aka Whackyland.

Scenes: On America you picture a Cowboy on a horse on the prairie at Sunset...on Fine Tuning, it's a Cathedral in Europe....PRODUCTION creates this.

This isn't airy/fairy stuff...it's the reality of transporting listeners through sound. Easy? Ah no! Do-able..of course. Listen to the production on the CES demos and you'll see.


THE WORLD OF SOUND:
Still tied to earth? escape! There's a world of sound:

Natural: Thunderstorms

Human: Running...panting....sleeping...crying

Electronic: Phasing, Backwards songs, repeat echo, STEREO panning

Created: Get out your audio brush and paint!

Musical: Bagpipes on XMLM sounded great! Harps, Oboes, Strings, Ukulele, Banjo, psychedelic.....it's all there to use

SFX: Close your eyes. Listen. Office Sounds, Traffic Sounds. Sounds of Life

Media: Old TV, audio archives, TV themes, jingles. Sounds of media. Pams!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Crazy: XMLMs use of a Square Dance caller calling Metal lyrics is priceless and brilliant.

Film: Short film bites!!!

Use sound....all of it.

THE WORLD OF VOICES:

Big radio voices....why? It's dated. Try foreign accents, real people voices, whacked voices, regional accents etc....
The "Big Radio Voice" is by most accounts dead. Big voices are the radio equivalent of Ted Knight on the old Mary Tyler Moore show.

COMEDY:
Leave Comedy to the experts. Most attempts at comedy production fail. The way to present comedy is through:

Wackiness: Stuff that’s so out there its funny (XMU, Fred)

Reality bites: Old newscasts, commercials, speeches can be hilarious by todays' standards.

WRITING:
Without good, succinct writing, a piece can be useless. The Cross Country stuff was good...But with the added line "Where Country is Going" it became great. The line "From the Mayan Ruins to the Cathedrals of Europe...XMs fine Tuning...adventurous music for a creatively starved planet" is cool...America's promo targeting the Steel Worker is wonderful. Writing dramatically, clearly and intelligently is of critical importance. Every piece needs an end point...a reason. It can be as simple as station name, or it can paint a sound and word picture.

SHARING: Between us, we have an incredible arsenal of sound. Get in there and share. We will be cataloging it in time, but for now, take advantage of the open office....talk around if you're looking for that "special" sound.

POWER:
Production should be powerful. But powerful does not mean loud. It means gripping...compelling. Anyone can create loud sound....but there's brilliance in creating power and drama subtly. My point: There's a place for loud AND subtle. Pink Floyd are powerful but subtle.
Production can be:

IN YOUR FACE--powerful via rhythmic...body moving...earth shaking
or
IN YOUR HEAD--powerful via Technicolor, lush, dreamy, sensual

Lets not forget the POWER OF SILENCE where in your head is as powerful as in your face.

Float LIke a Butterfly..Sting Like a Bee


LENGTHS:
Short, medium and long. Mix em up....but long should NEVER exceeded a minute or so, unless it is truly special. We are flexible enough to use long pieces, but they need to hold up.

CLARITY:
You gotta be able to UNDERSTAND the verbiage, There are cases where there's SO much going on, the name gets blurred.

SLOGANS:
Where are they? Every format has them...these re-enforce. Not necessary in EVERY piece...but a significant number should be tagged.

ORIGINAL:
Our stuff should be so original; stations in Europe will want to license it from US


WHY ALL OF THIS IS IMPORTANT:

Above all, there's a ton to do (show openings, closes, etc...). No doubt we'll get it done, but it must be done to the quantity, quality and perfection we need. That's why we're flagging this now.

1. We aim to have to have the best music mixes on earth. But a)that’s copyable b)That’s half the on air equation. The rest is what occurs between the songs! Great music mixes + Great Talent + Amazing production is MAGIC...AMAZING RADIO

2. Production is the anchor in creating the "XM Sound" that we want America to embrace as a radio revolution. It's the area that can create the fastest most lasting factor in what makes our sound so fresh.

3. It's powerful. It's the framework of our sound.

IF PRODUCTION SOUND IS OUT OF SYNC WITH THE FORMAT....IT'S NOISE & CLUTTER

.I cannot stress the critical importance of this. Right now, we are not there. I am confident that with PD tutelege...we'll be there...FAST.
AFDI ? ACTION TIME.
Lee